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The Japanese screening schedule of the Japanese animation movie SAMPO SHOJO (算法少女, 2016) has been announced.

The film’s title translates as “Algorithm Girl”, with sampo referring to classic Japanese mathematics also known as wazan, san-gaku, san-jutsu and san-do, etc. They were mainly used during the Edo-period (1600 – 1868). Sampo Shojo is also the title of a book about wazan that was originally published in 1775. The original edition of the book can be found in the National Diet Library.

The anime SAMPO SHOJO is a drama about a thirteen year old girl who lives during the Edo-period. The story was written by Ms. Hiroko Endo as a novel based on the original Sampo Shojo book.

In 2013, the website of Mr. Mimura’s office, Red Queen, put out a call for voice actors for the movie. Approximately 140 people responded, but all were young people.* The director, Mr. Shiro Tomura, also wanted senior performers for some roles, and some professional actors accepted his offer. These include three who are well known yo Tokusatsu fans…

1. Mr. Shigeo Kato is a legendary actor. His first work was in Akira Kurosawa’s IKIRU (1952) and he played many roles in Toho movies for directors Akira Kurosawa, Ishiro Honda, Mikio Naruse, Kihachi Okamoto, Kon Ichikawa and Jun Fukuda. He is 91 years old and still an active performer… one reason why he is called a legend.

In 2000, he had a cameo in Masaaki Tezuka’s GODZILLA VS. MEGAGUIRUS. I spoke with Mr. Kato at a SAMPO SHOJO recording session and he still has fond memories of his role in that movie.

2. Mr. Satoshi Furuya was the suit actor of the original Ultraman. In SAMPO SHOJO he played the father of the title character; the first voice performance in his career.

Through Celebrity ICONS, Mr. Furuya has made personal appearances at events in the U.S. In 2016, the 50th anniversary of Ultraman, he attended Spooky Empire (Orlando, FL), G-Fest (Chicago, IL), Fandom Fest (Louisville, KY) and New York Comic Con. He enjoys seeing western Tokusatsu fans and he will continue to attend events in foreign countries.

3. Mr. Kyusaku Shimada is also a veteran actor. Tokusatsu fan may remember that the phantom Yasunori Kato was played by him in Akio Jissoji’s TOKYO: THE LAST MEGALOPOLIS (帝都物語, Teito Monogatari, 1988).